Los Angeles Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani came within four outs of throwing the first no-hitter by a two-way player in MLB history.
Ohtani's bid ended when Oakland Athletics outfielder Conner Capel hit a single with two outs in the eighth inning during Thursday's game. The A's haven't been no-hit since 1991.
Conner Capel gets a hit off Ohtani to break up the no-hitter ... pic.twitter.com/8WZpNnzss7
— A's on NBCS (@NBCSAthletics) September 30, 2022
The reigning AL MVP ultimately allowed just two hits with 10 strikeouts and one walk over eight shutout innings in the Angels' 4-2 victory. He now owns a 2.35 ERA with 213 strikeouts across 161 innings (27 starts) this season.
Ohtani also collected two hits and an RBI in a masterful performance just one day after New York Yankees star Aaron Judge tied the American League single-season record with his 61st homer. The two players are in hot pursuit of AL MVP honors.
"I definitely feel like this season is better overall," Ohtani said postgame, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. "My pitching numbers are better and I'm just playing with more confidence after experiencing last year. I know I won MVP last year but I feel like I'm having a better season this year."
Ohtani added: "I feel like you guys are more of an expert on the voting, the writers, so I'll leave it up to you guys. But I'm definitely enjoying it. I enjoy watching Judge. I watched him hit 61. Just as a baseball fan, it's great watching him do his thing."
The 28-year-old has never thrown a complete game in the majors. He last accomplished the feat in 2017 while playing for the Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan.
